Arsenal face a difficult start to the 2025/26 Premier League season, as Mikel Arteta has been handed a brutal first few fixtures.
Mikel Arteta is looking to end a 22-year wait for the title by the end of the campaign, having come frustratingly close in the past three seasons.
It won’t be the easiest of starts for the Spaniard and his team, though, as the Premier League fixture list has revealed.
Arsenal take on Manchester United in their first game of the season, with a tough trip to Old Trafford only the start of a difficult six-game run.
Within that comes some tough decisions that Arteta and his coaching staff will have to make in the build-up to the clash.
One of those surrounds who starts up front for Arsenal, with an unpopular choice on the table.
Arsenal must start Kai Havertz over a new striker against Manchester United
With such a brutal start to the 2025/26 campaign, Arsenal have little chance to ease themselves into the season.
Instead, they have to hit the ground running, and that may factor into Mikel Arteta’s thought process with his team.
While it’s obvious that Arsenal are going to sign a new striker, their move for one of Viktor Gyokeres or Benjamin Sesko may be one that takes time.
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Neither star has played in the Premier League in their career, and that may come with an adjustment period to the top level.
In such important games at the start of the season, Arsenal can’t afford to start slowly, and while big money will be spent on a centre-forward, it may be best to focus on those who can make an immediate impact.
For that role, the most obvious candidate is Kai Havertz.
Many criticisms have been thrown the way of the German international, but he has been a reliable forward option nonetheless.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | 9 | 3 |
Given that Havertz missed nearly half the season through injury, his strike rate of a goal nearly every two games in the league is a fine record in itself.
It’s something he will be looking to build on, having proven just how important he is to the team.
While it may frustrate fans that a full debut could be delayed for an incoming striker, Havertz is likely to have the more immediate impact needed.
Kai Havertz’s record against Manchester United
In his career so far, Havertz has something of a mixed record against Manchester United.
He has faced off against the Red Devils seven times in his career, setting up two goals against them in those appearances.
| Appearances | Wins | Draws | Defeats |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
While it is a mixed record, that is still more experience in those sorts of matches than those coming into the club have faced.
That may change, of course, if Arsenal decide to look elsewhere in the market for Premier League experience.
Someone like Ollie Watkins, who is a transfer target for Arsenal, could make the shift over a little more immediately than those from elsewhere.
However, it remains to be seen if he is someone the Gunners could prioritise over Benjaim Sesko or Viktor Gyokeres this summer.
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